At least €5,000, mentors and bookings for Belgian makers of outdoor circus
Circ'UIT
If you make circus, have a link to Belgium, and your next show is meant for outdoors or for a particular site, this one is for you. Circ'UIT, a network of eight Flemish and Walloon partners, is taking applications for its 2026 open call.
Applications close on Friday 20 November 2026 at 23:59.
WHAT IT IS
Selected projects get at least €5,000, and two Circ'UIT partners mentor the creation up to the premiere. At least three partners then commit to programming the show within its first two seasons. You also get a letter of intent to back your other funding applications, visibility on the network's and the partners' channels, and the partners bring the project into their own professional networks.
If you're leading a creation for outdoor or site-specific spaces for the first time, Circ'UIT can make a different offer, for what it calls young makers. Its definition is about that first time and sets no age limit. The offer keeps the €5,000 minimum and the two mentors, and adds at least one residency with a partner and at least two work-in-progress showings. Programming after that is possible but not guaranteed.
In return, you credit Circ'UIT as a co-producer in all communication about the project, and you take part in the agreed presentations.
The eight partners are Chassepierre, CIRK! Aalst, Cirque Plus, Dommelhof, Latitude 50, Miramiro, Namur en Mai and Plein de Cirque. Circ'UIT started in 2020 and has supported 13 shows so far, with five more on the way. Up to nine applicants get an interview, and there's no fixed number of winners: it depends on the partners and the budget available.
WHO CAN APPLY
- ·An individual artist or a company with a clear link to Belgium: a legal seat in Belgium, or at least one main maker or project leader who is Belgian or a permanent resident of Belgium. Say how you meet this in the application.
- ·Circus has to be at the core of the project. Other disciplines can be part of it (Circ'UIT names dance, music, visual arts and technology), but circus leads.
- ·The show is made for outdoors or for a specific site, indoor or outdoor, as an artistic choice.
- ·The project is in creation or about to start. If you're still in research, Circ'UIT says your application may be early. You don't need a fully developed plan.
- ·You must be able to send an invoice. A self-employed artist can; a private individual can't. Without a legal structure of your own, apply under the name of the production company you work with, or explain that setup in the application.
- ·Solo projects are as eligible as group shows. Applying is free, and you can apply again with a new project if Circ'UIT has supported you before.